Unfortunately, Vanderbilt basketball’s first NCAA tournament appearance in eight years was a short one, with the Commodores falling 59-56 to the Gaels of Saint Mary’s. The result was a brutal gut punch for the team and the fans, but one we probably should have seen coming. As with so many other losses this season, Vandy seemed in control for most of the game – leading 29-22 at the half and leading by as many as 12 with sixteen minutes left -- only to see things unravel through the second half. The experienced Gaels were able to expose many of the shortcomings we’ve seen with the Commodores all season – the lack of size, inconsistent shooting, and the scoring droughts with the lack of a reliable secondary scorer after Jason Edwards – all of which resulted in Vandy’s untimely lowest point total of the season.
With the sudden end of the season Commodore fans are left with conflicting emotions. On the one hand fans must acknowledge the season was an overwhelming success by any metric. This was a first-year coach in Mark Byington with an entirely new roster that was picked last in the SEC. Going to the NIT would have been an accomplishment. Going to the NCAA Tournament, in what many have argued is the best conference top to bottom in the history of college basketball, seemed unthinkable. Just the fact that for the first time in eight years we are feeling heartbreak with the last game instead of relief is a huge step forward.
On the other hand, there is also a sense of disappointment at the way the season finished in what feels like a giant missed opportunity. Saint Mary’s is good, but this was a winnable game there for the taking. Even beyond that, the way this team floundered down the stretch was certainly troubling to see. The program was riding high March 1st after Vandy’s gritty, thrilling overtime home win against Missouri. That victory, which followed the Commodores’ most impressive road win of the season at Texas A&M, clinched their NCAA tournament bid. Everyone knew it. And from that point on, it was March Sadness. The Dores played like a team that knew it was safe in the tournament and subsequently appeared to lose the edge that made them overachieving underdogs up to that point. It looked like a completely different team that would lose four straight to finish the season.
Both things can be true. We can celebrate a successful season in which the team overachieved, while also having a sour taste in our mouths at the four-game losing streak to end the year. And while the sting of this loss gradually begins to dissipate, we can also be optimistic about the future of this program with the foundation Byington has laid.
And I do believe the future of this program is bright. Stackhouse was here five seasons and never sniffed the NCAA tournament. It took Byington all of one season, which just angers fans more about those five wasted seasons of going nowhere.
Byington isn’t perfect. We’ve noted the poor finish to the season. Some of his lineup decisions have left fans scratching their heads as the opposing team goes on a huge run. And he absolutely must figure out his kryptonite that is the second half that he never quite figured out this season.
But unlike Stackhouse, I don’t think Byington is too arrogant to recognize his own deficiencies and work to improve upon them. He strikes me as the kind of coach who eats, sleeps, and breathes ball. He is a relatively young coach who will continue to get better, and I think he has proven after just one season he can win at a high level at Vanderbilt.
The good news is, unlike a year ago, he doesn’t have to start from scratch. Jason Edwards, MJ Collins, Tyler Tanner, Tyler Nickel, Jaylen Carey, and Devin McGlockton – assuming all return – form a talented nucleus from a tournament team to build on. If Byington can add some size, shooting, and a good point guard, this team could make some real noise next season.
Gone are AJ Hoggard, one of the most polarizing athletes among Vandy fans in recent memory. He had some nice moments this season, but I think it’s fair to say the team’s highest paid player was never quite what we were hoping he would be – especially in the postseason. Chris Manon is a tremendous athlete and an excellent defender who was often put on the opposing team’s best perimeter player. He would also chip in with scoring and rebounding and his versatility will certainly be missed. Grant Huffman was a solid but unspectacular presence at guard who helped steady the team with reliable defense protecting the ball.
The pain is still fresh, but as time goes by and the hurt subsides Byington’s first team at Vanderbilt will long be remembered with fondness as a gritty team that played hard and overachieved. Hopefully this will also be a season remembered as a turning point for the program, the first of what will be a regular occurrence from this point forward with the Commodores dancing in March. And next time, as Byington and his program continue to grow, I would bet on the dance lasting a little longer…
